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I just got a 500 GB Samsung spinpoint hard drive to use as an external storage devise. It seems the first thing I must do is format it. What is the best format to choose? Also, it seems it could be good if all computers can read the hard disk in case I need to share files. So is there a good format that Windows can also read? If I choose one that Windows machines can also read, is there any disadvantage to the format I would use for Mac only?
Any other tips also welcome!
Thank you very much.
Justin

The best one to go for is FAT 32. This way, all machines can read and write to it. The down side being file sizes are limited to 4 and a bit GB, so huge high def movies are out. Someone else may be better equipt to tell you, but I think Tiger can now read and write to NTFS drives, but don't take my word for that.

HFS+ is the best. If you are going to be using it with PCs get MacDrive.

What is the advantage of HFS+?
And, wen I open the drive with disc utility, I do not see a "format" option, but do see an "erase" option. Under that it looks like I can choose a format ("volume format" dropdown menu) but they are all "Mac OS extended" etc, I cannot see FAT 32. So how do I format in FAT32 (or HFS+)?

And for example if I wanted to use FAT32 and a little of it for HFS+, do i need to partition the drive now, or can I make it all FAT32, use it for a while, and while there is still a lot of space left, make a new partition?

What is the advantage of HFS+?
And, wen I open the drive with disc utility, I do not see a "format" option, but do see an "erase" option. Under that it looks like I can choose a format ("volume format" dropdown menu) but they are all "Mac OS extended" etc, I cannot see FAT 32. So how do I format in FAT32 (or HFS+)?

And for example if I wanted to use FAT32 and a little of it for HFS+, do i need to partition the drive now, or can I make it all FAT32, use it for a while, and while there is still a lot of space left, make a new partition?

Thank very much!
Justin

The erase method you have found is the correct way. HFS+ is the Mac OS extended option (use journaled).

To get he FAT-32 option you must select the drive (not the partition):

ext2 is a good idea for a Mac because it fully supports the concept of file ownership and permisssions just like HFS+. So this makes it superior to FAT32. ext2 also has the benefit of being open source freeware.

ext2 is a good idea for a Mac because it fully supports the concept of file ownership and permisssions just like HFS+. So this makes it superior to FAT32. ext2 also has the benefit of being open source freeware.

What advantage does HFS+ have? (I mean, why would I want to chose it, as it is less compatible. That is a minus. What is the plus?)
Thanks
Justin

Justin, the BIG advantage of most of the *nix file systems (and that includes HFS+ and ext2) is that they support the idea of file ownership and access permissions. This is a really key part of keeping your Mac safe from trojans, virus' etc.

In general, your account is only the owner of the files in your home directory. All the rest are owned by a special user called root. By and large, you have full read/write access to the files you own. In general you only have read access to the files owned by root.

Now, lets say some horrible virus gets loose on your system because you mistakenly clicked a link or ran an executable or... whatever. When it tries to have its way with ANY of the Mac OS X system files, it will fail, because it is running under your userid and your userid does not have permission to write to files owned by root.

While not perfect (really clever people can find ways around this) this provides a wonderful first level of protection for your Mac's system files from your everyday garden variety virus.

SO, you *want* a file system that supports this idea. FAT32 does not, so if at all possible, don't use it. HFS+ and ext2 *do* support this idea, so if you can, use them.

One last point. There are plenty of open source software products, like Thunderbird for example, which extensively leverage file ownership permissions to keep everything running smoothly. Change the permissions, or get them lost by transferring key files through a FAT32 partition, and suddenly things start to misbehave. Again, a file system that supports file ownership and permissions eliminates this as an issue.